Speaker Straus Claims Re-Election Victory For HD 121

Speaker Straus claims victory at the Barn Door Restaurant in San Antonio

Joey Palacios
/ Texas Public Radio

Originally published on March 2, 2016 2:02 am

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Texas House Speaker Joe Straus easily defeated tea party candidate Jeff Judson (numbers) in House District 121, which includes Alamo Heights and parts of Northern San Antonio. The victory followed a vicious race in which Straus Jewish religion and conservatism were attacked.

The early vote for Republican Joe Straus was so strong he claimed victory about an hour and half after the polls closed. Opponent Jeff Judson aired television ads that questioned Straus conservatism and support for sanctuary cities legislation. One called him a murderer. Straus has faced similar hate-filled attacks before and said the groups’ financing his opponents are outsiders who don’t care about the district.

“They just want more and more control. This year they even went out to find two opponents to run against me,” Straus said. “They launched more attacks and uglier attacks than they ever have before. But once again you proved that their tactics do not work around here.”

Straus said his reelection was a show of support for civility and optimism in politics.

“I think it taught, not the opponents so much because they were just puppets of these people out of the district, but it taught those people in other parts of the state that they better not mess with the people of house district 121,” he added.

Straus has no Democratic opposition in November . He says he intends to run for Speaker of the House again in 2017.